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Jeff Conaway Fan Chat
A transcript of the chat that happened on events.scifi.com on September 4,1998.


*** JeffConaway (chat-4@user-38lcpjh.dialup.mindspring.com) has joined #auditorium
<Atalla> hello mr Conaway
<Lara> thanx scouse
<Atalla> how are you ?
<Starbuck> Hi Jeff!
<Scouse> welcome, Lara :)
*** Moderator sets mode: +v JeffConaway
<Lara> so who's up next?
<honeygirl> sorry.
<Scouse> Jeff Conoaway, lara
<kismet> For what?
<Lara> so who does he play?
<beth> Zac
<LONDOMULARI> JEFF Hi, I watched you in GREASE, TAXI and B5.  Which did you lie best.  Are you sorry to leave B5?
<Lara> wow
<Scouse> He plays Zack Allen
<Moderator> We are now going to moderate this chat...
<Lara> exellent
<Atalla> ok
<kismet> I've never heard of him before.
<Dave> Hello Mr Conaway
<Moderator> Welcome Mr.Conaway. Anything you want to say before we start our chat?
<Purple> Hello
* Atalla bows grwacefully to mr Conaway
<Scouse> The security chief, Kismet... took over from Garibaldi
*** Moderator sets mode: +m
<Moderator> Send your questions for Mr. Conaway to Moderator.
<JeffConaway> It's nice to be here and talk to all of you.  Look forward to answering your questions
<Moderator> <DarkHawke> to <Moderator>: Jeff, the scene you had with Pat Tallman in "Thirdspace" felt so real it hurt!  How was it to play from your end?
<JeffConaway> It was kind of a little frightening with all that dialog.  I had just gotten it the night before and I was very concentrated and focused when I did it.  We did it only 4 different times from four different angles and I never missed a line.
<JeffConaway> As far as the action and what I was doing, it is kind of difficult to profess your love to a mumbling idiot
* JeffConaway smiles
-> *Moderator* Mr. Conaway, are you a bid science fiction fan? If so, what shows other than Babylon 5 do you watch?
*** Moderator1 sets mode: +o Moderator1
<JeffConaway> And I think what she was mumbling was "Zack you're never ging to get any,Zack you're never going to get any, ad infinitum
* JeffConaway chuckles
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator> <blazerunner> to <Moderator>: Jeff...I here that Jerry Doyle plays a lot of tricks on people on the set.  Do you have any stories about pranks he pulled on you?
<JeffConaway> HE never pulled one on me, probably because he was afraid I would pull one back.
<JeffConaway> .
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator> <Helloween> to <Moderator>: Jeff I loved you in Taxi do you still see any of the cast members today? What is "Nardo" up to these days is she still as beautiful as ever?
<JeffConaway> yeah, as a matter of fact, just finished a film called Man on the Moon, which is Andy Kaufmann's kind of life story, and all the Taxi people were called to do a segment of the film.
<JeffConaway> Everybody showed up except Tony, cause he was doing a show in NY
<JeffConaway> and Elaine Nardo, Marilou Henner, looks better than ever.  She has a best seller book out right now about staying in shape, keeping fit, eating right.  Put it this way, she used to be a Cadillac; now she's a Ferrari
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator> <Atalla> to <Moderator>: "Mr Conaway, did you know what B5 was when you did audition for the role?"
<JeffConaway> Yeah, I was a fan of the show
<JeffConaway> and that's the reason why I wanted to do such a small part to begin with
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator> <Lara> to <Moderator>: Would you have liked your character to of had more to do with lyta?
<JeffConaway> Yeah, it would have been fun to explore the relationship with her, but Joe, the Oz of babylon, didin't want me to get any!!!!!!!!
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator> <Top> to <Moderator>: What's it like working on the set of B5?
<JeffConaway> it's been a wonderful fulfilling experience.  the crew and the cast are very tight knit, everybody is very supportive of each other and getting to do a piece like Babylon 5 is very satisfying because of the content and the vision.  So all around, it was a pretty wonderful experience
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator> <ILLEGALALIEN> to <Moderator>: Jeff, your character a lot of the time seems to be holding back a lot of emotions. Is this a difficult thing to do as an actor?
<JeffConaway> .
<JeffConaway> well, it's a chance to harness and control.  I'm kind of an emotional person, and yeah, it has been a challenge to just kind of bite the bullet and hold everything back playing that kind of stoic character, even though at times I have let the emotions come through to kind of punctuate the character and make him a little bit as human as he would like to be able to be if it were not for his position
<JeffConaway> .
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> Please send your questions to Moderator1 from now on.
<Moderator> Please send your questions to Moderator1.
<Moderator1> <Moderator> <Starbuck> to <Moderator>: Mr. Conaway can you fill us in on any information for your character in
<Moderator1> Crusades?
<JeffConaway> No, just that I will remain Zack Allen and do guest shots from time to time if I am available.  I hope I am, but, being an actor, you have to go where they hire you.
<JeffConaway> I've got two films I am working on and a Christian music CD that I have been writing this year.  Basically, I have written 30 songs this year
<JeffConaway> so that's keeping me very busy
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <Moderator> <MattRies> to <Moderator>: Is there any type of genre that you would like to act in that you have not tried?
<JeffConaway> well, basically i have done everything except maybe Kabuki
* JeffConaway smiles
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <Moderator> <Starbuck> to <Moderator>: Mr. Conaway, I have a fan page dedicated to you and I was wondering if there
<Moderator1> was any way fans could get in contact with you? Either by e-mail or regular mail
<JeffConaway> yeah, you can always write care of the show to either Babylonian Productions or Warner Brothers.  I think I have email somewhere, but I don't know how it all works  I believe I also have a web page
<JeffConaway> .
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> Moderator> <Lesssa> to <Moderator>: How'd you like working with Wizards and Warriors? Still watch it from time to
<Moderator1> time?
<JeffConaway> I loved Wizards and Warriors.  It was a very special show that was probably ahead of its time
<JeffConaway> We got caught in a political battle at CBS and were basically programmed into oblivion
<JeffConaway> Every once in a while, I will slip one in just to get a laugh.  My son was in one of them, so anytime I want to see him as a little boy, I just put that one in.
<JeffConaway> I was very disappointed that the show was canceled, but that's life.  What's life?
<JeffConaway> A magazine
<JeffConaway> how much does it cost?
<JeffConaway> 5 bucks
<JeffConaway> haven't got 5 bucks
<JeffConaway> that's life
<JeffConaway> lol
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <Moderator> <Xenn> to <Moderator>: Do you actors often imitate eahc other roles..to make fun out of the other? What'd
<Moderator1> be your favo imitation?
<JeffConaway> I don't know.  sometimes I used to kind of imitate Bruce every once in a while to have fun with him   Do a scene with Delenn and Bruce together.  That was an interesting experiment in  comedy
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <LadyGhost> <to jeff conaway> what's the directer like?
<JeffConaway> Which one?  we have many different directors?
<JeffConaway> .
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <Atalla> "Mr Conaway, what would you change in your character? if JMS gave you that liberty?"
<JeffConaway> I would just like to basically be Emperor of the Universe, but seriously, folks, I think just I would not really change anything but just be more than he is allowed to be.  I am sorry the character has reached its end except for guesst shots because he still hasn't grown to where I would have liked to have taken him
<JeffConaway> which maybe was just to show a little bit more compassion, and the more comfortable he got with his role as chief to expand his horizons a little bit more and have more interplay with the other characters and bring out I think, just develop where he was going, if that answers the question
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <Starbuck> Mr. Conaway can you fill us in on any information for your character in Crusades?
<JeffConaway> It will be zack allen, just not enough of him   lol
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <Purple> Jeff Conaway What was it like working with the B5 cast during the last eps? Was the feeling onset emotional?
<JeffConaway> yeah, there was a lot of different kind of dysfunctional family things going on.  People weren't sure they were continuing or not continuing, and therefore it caused a lot of angst.
<JeffConaway> and with some, miserable distraction.
<JeffConaway> I think everybody was very sad to see it end  because it basically had enough life to go on for who knows how long, but JMS wanted to end it
<JeffConaway> MY feeling was, having been in this business for 38 years now, it's so hard to get a hit, that to end it is kind of insane.  Forget about integrity!  Just do the SHOW!!
* JeffConaway chukles
<JeffConaway> but that's just me
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <Starbuck> Mr. Conaway, which episode of Babylon 5 do you think is your favorite?
<JeffConaway> I have a tough time with that.  I think I love the ep that Wayne Alexander did Sebastien.  I loved that script and that character and Wayne did a great job.
<JeffConaway> There are so many that I love.  I loved the one where i turned nightwatch over
<JeffConaway> and the one where Byron died
<JeffConaway> *evil grin*
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <Top> Jeff are you planning on doing any other sci-fi projects?
<JeffConaway> god only knows that
<JeffConaway> I'm working on writing and producing a kind of fantasy series with CGI city and a building called 14 Stories, with some pretty wacky characters and, I guess you could somewhat call it SCIFI
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <jaybo> what tv programs do you watch for enjoyment?
<JeffConaway> Well, I like sports, I like some of the news,
<JeffConaway> I really love the comedy of President Clinton's addresses
<JeffConaway> and I like, of course, Babylon 5
<JeffConaway> I liked NYPD Blue, Law and Order.
<JeffConaway> I like Frasier
<JeffConaway> and I liked Jerry SEinfeld
<JeffConaway> AND, OF COURSE, reruns of TAXI
* JeffConaway smiles
<JeffConaway> That's about it
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <EThome> IYHO, is there anything lacking from current sci-fi tv shows/series?
<JeffConaway> Well, yeah, JMS and ME
<JeffConaway> lol
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <Purple> Jeff Who were/are  some of your idols in the entertainment field ?
<JeffConaway> you know, marlon brando, robert dinero, al pacino.
<JeffConaway> I always liked Jack Lemmon and Walter Mathau
<JeffConaway> Sir Laurence Olivier, Jon Guilgud, Kermit the Frog  :-)
<JeffConaway> AND Glenda, witch of the south!!!   lol
<JeffConaway> somebody said I was wrong but I knew better and it is the NORTH
<JeffConaway> :-)
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <KiKi> What do you think about season 5?
<JeffConaway> I think because they thought that the show was getting canceled at the end of year 4, nobody listened to me; I knew they were going to be back.
<JeffConaway> Joe was forced to rush through the 4th season and finish his story
<JeffConaway> so I think year 5 is kind of a year of standalones, almost, except for those damned BYRON shows
* JeffConaway chuckles again
<JeffConaway> I jsut loved how his arcs went off stories.  There was a kind of loose cohesiveness of who was raiding the ships and causing all the trouble, but it didn't seem as focused to me as years 1-4
<JeffConaway> Anybody agree?
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <LONDOMULARI> Do you spend time with the cast outside of work?  What is Andreas Katsulas like?
<JeffConaway> HE's really a woman.
<JeffConaway> and he's the only one my wife will let me cheat on her with
<JeffConaway> lol
<JeffConaway> The rest of the cast we see at parties and basically we all take turns giving parties and going to each other's house
<JeffConaway> Basically Andreas is a slut.
<JeffConaway> but everybody's got their problems
* JeffConaway laughs
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <ILLEGALALIEN> Jeff,If you could be any cartoon character,who would it be?
<JeffConaway> oh, gee whiz, I don't know, who would it be?
<JeffConaway> I liked Top Cat; he was kind of fun.  I liked spiderman really well, and Batman is real cool.
<JeffConaway> I thought I was a cartoon character
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <Purple> If you could act with anyone who would it be and what kind of scene ?
<JeffConaway> I'd really love to act with Marlon Brando
<JeffConaway> and it would be a scene about him telling me how brilliant I was  lol
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <Lesssa> Which character would you revisit in a heartbeat? What would be the storyline?
<JeffConaway> I revisit Conicki
<JeffConaway> It looks like I am going to.  They are talking about a reunion movie, and this time I get to sing GReased Lightening
<JeffConaway> I think the story line is something like Rizzo always had the hots for Danny and when Sandy and Danny flew off at the end of Grease, they went to Hollywood and became movie stars,
<JeffConaway> I an would be at the drivein with all these kids in the car and we would be making out and I say that she was watching the scene while I was tickling her tonsils and that would start a fight
<JeffConaway> Basically it would be a movie about how fragile relationships are how people get upset over stupid things and don't communicate enough.
<JeffConaway> something like that
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <Arcadiana> How do you like conventions?
<JeffConaway> I really like them the first day
<JeffConaway> then they roll downhill from there
<JeffConaway> chuckle
<JeffConaway> I really like meeting all the people and getting their points of view about the show and the character.
<JeffConaway> I am always taken with how genuine the people are and how sweet they are.  I really appreciate them.
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <Happycaveman> What's it like being back with your old cast on your new movie Man on the Moon?
<JeffConaway> it was totally surreal
<JeffConaway> I can't tell you what a strange situation it was for all of us, and we all kind of like clung to each other so as not to lose our minds
<JeffConaway> they put this long wig on me and the first day it did not look good
<JeffConaway> I was bending over next to where marilou was sitting and I said to her "isn't this like surreal?"  and she said, "What's surreal is your HAIR!"
<JeffConaway> So the rest of the movie she was always telling me to get my hair fixed and she really took care of me
<JeffConaway> all in all it was a wonderful and I am glad I did it because I had had second thoughts about doing it
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <prophecy> jeff , could you tell us something about river of souls?
<JeffConaway> no, because if I do, I'll never get a guest shot.  It's that old rule, "DON'T TELL NOBODY NOTHIN"
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> <Lara> Have you had any memorable bloopers while the filming of babylon5
<JeffConaway> I don't know; they show them at Christmas time.  It's funny because I don't screw up a lot and one day I was complaining that I never got on the gag reel.  I was filming at the time, so that got on the gag reel
<JeffConaway> Some people have great bloopers.  I have some stuff, but I can't even talk about it
* JeffConaway laughs
<JeffConaway> .
<Moderator1> Thanks, Mr. Conaway. We have time for one more question.
<Moderator1> <PiRho> Do you ever have any complaints about how your character is written?
<JeffConaway> Not usually.
<JeffConaway> I did have a problem in River of Souls a little bit, and when you see it you'll know why  That 's about all I can really say about that
<JeffConaway> most of the time I have been really happy about it.  there has been some real complexity with it and real growth, and most of the time it has been areal joy to live with Zack
<Moderator1> We've been chatting with Jeff Conaway from "Babylon 5." Mr. Conaway, do you have any parting words or thoughts for our chatters tonight?
<JeffConaway> thank you all for your questions and your time and your support
<JeffConaway> Look forward to seeing you in the Funny papers
<JeffConaway> God Bless!!
<JeffConaway> JeffZackkenickiBobby
<Moderator1> Thanks to all our chatters for your questions. We'll be chatting with Apollo Smile at 9:30 EST, so be sure to check back.
*** JeffConaway (chat-4@user-38lcpjh.dialup.mindspring.com) has left #auditorium



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